‘Summer Snowdonia’ – Slate Mine Saturday…

Or a Marked Lack of Enthusiasm, a World Made of Slate and Llanberis Saturday Night Action…

We wake to a thick mist and despite all the sleep we’ve had there is little get up and go in the camper this morning.

Finally despite a marked lack of enthusiasm from all quarters we force ourselves out into the damp grey world.

We head up to the disused slate quarry that overlooks the site. We meet a very friendly couple of wild campers pitched under an oak. We crunch across slate and huge piles of it tower above us. A forlorn sheep stands with a dead lamb half born.

We lose the path and pick our way through wet bracken and bog and past abandoned slate buildings. Contrary to expectations Millie enjoys it all immensely and her tail goes up and her eyes brighten.

We clamber over a metal gate and onto the Slate Road that leads to Cefn-du. The world around us is mist filled and grey but on the horizon we can see the light shining from the sea.

We turn back towards Llanberis and quite cheerfully follow the track back through the hills.

We eat beef stew and rice and decide that by tomorrow we are bound to have rediscovered our get up and go.

We start looking for it by going for an evening walk along the shore to Dolbaris Castle. It is a beautiful still evening. We watch a bat hunt up and down the deep, clear stream that runs through the woods below the castle.

The main street is hopping and further on we see four burly policemen aided by some local kids walking up a side street to deal with a domestic.

“That’s probably as exciting as it gets here on a Saturday night” says Darrell.

Millie worn out by all the excitement lies on her back in his arms, head hanging, watching the action upside down…